Don't plan too hard!

writing

Workout finished. Not exactly the way I wanted it to. I hurt my lower back. Excruciating pain. No idea how it started. It did not happen during my workout, but right after. Maybe while I was putting away weights, steps or risers…who knows. (I heard that)…it has nothing to do with my getting older! 🙂

Having low threshold for pain, I immediately hit the websites – read, and read on lower back pain. Started treatment. Iced the affected area, then used heat. Alternated that for a good couple of days. Took ibuprofen as well. Consulted my dear websites, again. Next step – added some stretch exercises. (I heard that, too)…I’m not going to the doctor! And, stop telling me what to do!

After two days, I felt well enough to try my Body Pump class. Using my body weight for squats and lunges; and low weight (about 5 lbs) for the rest of the class; I finished the one hour class. For the rest of the week – I kept low weight and focused on my form. The week ended well. Pain level, in control! (Heard that)…Awe, that’s sweet! Thank you for believing in my research and treatment. 🙂

Source of my back pain – who knows! But I do know that nursing that pain, helped. I’m happy now – that much I definitely know.

My usual daily walk, this morning, was usual in every sense; except that it was not usual. On this particular walk, every time, I passed a walker or a dog-walker, I was made aware that TODAY is the LAST DAY of the year 2015. And, this fact made today’s walk an un-usual one. “Happy new year,” “Happy 2016,” “Have a great new year,” “All the best in 2016.” These were wishes wished to me by the people I passed.

I started to get into the spirit of this day. With my pace trying to catch up with Thomas, my beagle; I felt my thoughts trying to catch up with this passing day. All the wishes started to swirl inside my head – no homelessness, no poverty, no killings, no hunger, no rapes, no child abuse, no child trafficking, no abuse, no animal abuse, no misuse of power and money…OH! MY THOUGHTS BECAME UNSTOPPABLE! My pace and blood flow followed! I realized that I ultimately wanted only ONE thing for our world, our earth, our planet, for 2016 and years beyond 2016:

It’s the right thing to think that this planet is my Mother-Earth! But it’s not my right to own it. But it’s time to make that right turn to care for this planet.

It’s the right thing to think that I must devote my time to raise and love my offsprings! But it’s not my right to own them. But it’s time to make that right turn to set them free and let them spread their wings.

It’s the right thing to think that I must love myself. But it’s not my right to own myself. So, it’s time to make that right turn to open my heart to live, laugh and love. And, towards the end make that right turn to become one with Mother Earth, who ultimately has the right to own me. And, that is the right thing to do!

November 2015: My daughter wants her friends to make tie-dye shirts during her sleepover birthday party. We buy a kit at a craft store for $12. (Not bad!)

Birthday party day arrives – While my daughter and her friends go for bowling and pizza; we, her Dad and I, set up her tie-dye stuff — plastic tablecloth, gloves, paper towels, buckets, shirts and the kits. All set! (We are relieved!)

My daughter calls around 9 p.m., “I’m cancelling the tie-dye activity because it’s too late.” She tells us to get rid of the stuff before they arrive home. Hurriedly, her Dad runs down to the basement, and quickly rolls up the plastic tablecloth with the tie-dye stuff, and sticks the whole thing behind our office area. (Whew! All set! Relieved again!) Next morning, party comes to a nice end, after a round of cinnamon rolls for everyone. (Yummy!)

December 2015: One month later.

10:30 A.M. – I go to the craft store and return the tie-dye kit. I get my $12 back. Now, I have some cash in my wallet. (I feel happy!)

2:30 P.M. – I drove my daughter to the animal shelter where she walks, loves and plays with the dogs. She does this 6-days a week.

5 P.M. – I pick her up from the shelter. (I can’t wait to go home and relax). Just then my daughter gets a call from a friend to join her for a holiday show. (No more relaxing!). (Oh, her Dad can drop her.) (Yay!) (I feel relaxed already!)

6:30 P.M. – She needed money to buy a ticket for the show. (Not an issue!). I give her the two $5 bills from the return I made at the craft store. (Down to $2 in my wallet.)

6:40 P.M. – Almost out of our drive way, I watch the car suddenly stop. (Why?) “Hurry, I need $2 more, tickets are $12.” I run inside — grab two $1 bills — give them to her. Off they go! (My wallet is now cash-free!) (But, now I can relax — that’s priceless!)

What just happened here? Little things just happened here! My returning the tie-dye kit! Receiving the $12! Giving away that same $12 for tickets! The ticket price happening to be $12. Hmm!

DING! My thoughts were abruptly paused by a text. “Can u check to see if the money fell in the driveway?” (What?!) ($ lost!) (Already!) (How?!) (And, just like that! – POOF!) (The $12 vanished) (How?!) (I think I asked that before … but really) (How?!)

“Not in the driveway. It has to be in the car cuz u did not come out of the car,” I text her back.

So very weird? I went through the entire tie-dye chain of events – buying the kit, returning the kit, giving the money from the return to my daughter! Only to have it lost! Small events make me wonder and ponder!

4 PM: My daughter returned home from school, played with the dogs, then got ready for gymnastics. Totally excited since she had missed several weeks of it.

4:15 PM: I called a photo studio to register my daughter for her senior picture session. After holding for 15 minutes I got a representative. But our connection cracking! Heck, I was not going to call again and wait again. Finally got good connection, I had to be outside my house. I felt a big relieve!

5 PM: I called the gymnastic place to make a payment. The director said that she will not charge me until she sees how my daughter does today. I was impressed…great customer service!

5:30 PM: Took my beagle for a walk. My husband took our pit bull. Great walk!

6:30 PM: Dinner time! I skewered marinated chicken. Then grilled it with peppers, onions. Baked a potato and split it in half. My husband sautéed peas. He loves peas.

7 PM: Had dinner out on the deck. Gave dogs chewy treats. Lit a candle. Enjoyed a beautiful cool evening.

8 PM: My daughter returned from gymnastics. All went well…she can continue. Good news! She had dinner…Edamame Pasta and Fruit smoothie.

9 PM: Daughter started on her homework. Dogs decided to rest. Husband went to play tennis. I sat to blog. Son rehearsing saxophone with a group of friends, should be coming home soon – 15 hours at school! Yikes.

Day is over. Evening has gracefully given into quiet sleepy night.

I really wanted to blog about this day. Everyday can be like this. Advice: Need to keep my cool, and not react instantly in any situation! Since I want good days like today, I’ll be reminding myself of this advice frequently. Good days to you all too:)

Quietness surrounds me; concentration pulls my thoughts together; vision focuses to my notes and my laptop. My body sits still on the bar stool, while my fingers do a tireless dance on the keyboard spewing words on the screen. And, the next thing I know, I’ve written something. I read, re-read, edit, edit again, and once I enjoy my writing, I post!

Before I post: I grab my space in time to write, because time keeps fleeting fast . I write in between my responsibilities. A habit that’s becoming addictive. I miss it if I don’t do it.

My iPhone is always with me, wherever I go. (I might as well embed it into my skin.) In the house, I keep my laptop right on the kitchen counter-top, few steps away from the stove. I have a drawer near the stove-top that carries my hand-writing supplies. Paper, pen, pencils, and Sharpies. I frequently jot down ideas on paper. Later when I type, I refer to my paper notes. A good system for me.

When I sit down to write, I shift my mental gear. I close all other thoughts and get focused on my notes, and start to elaborate on each point as I type on my blog.

When I was a young child, I never thought of the word home much. I lived in a nice home with wonderful parents. I went to school and returned home everyday and never thought of home as a home. But it was a place where I wanted to be all the time. Home was just a nice place where I was really comfortable. When I was home after school, I would make sure I went outside my home to spend time with my friends.

Fast forward to now. Now, I live in a nice home too. I have a family. My two kids are here at home. This house is now a home for my children. I see how much the same they are. This is a place where they are comfortable. This is a place where they want to come to at the end of their day. I think they are in the same state of being as I was when I was their age. When they get older and are out in the big world…they’ll realize that they had a nice home.

You only miss something when you are not in it. While you are in the moment, you cannot miss that moment. I remember many sweet times with my parents. We watched TV shows together, who does that now? Everyone in my family has their own electronics. Home was a place where the young me felt safe. loved, and cared for.

I wish a nice home for everyone. I am grateful that I had a place that I could call home. Everyone deserves a place that they can call home. Home on earth is one tiny spot where you feel you belong!

I write because…

Writing is like a good workout. Hard and rewarding! My workouts involve me riding on a stationary bike. When I’m riding uphill on this bike, I struggle to peddle. I find myself pushing them with all my might. I’m profusely sweating from head to toe! I feel the pain and pressure building in my legs and glutes:) It is during this struggle that good change happens to my muscles. This is the reward! I reach the top of my climb, I let go of the tension, and I start rolling downhill. I’m peddling at a high-speed with good momentum …it’s exhilarating! It’s the best release for all stress!

Writing is the same way. The pressure, tension and climb keeps building inside my head as it continues to pop ideas. Narrowing down these ideas take hard and clear focus. It’s at this point I feel that I have climbed a steep hill and made it to the top! I KNOW I made it! I’m sweating insanely in my brain:)! It’s time to pen down my thoughts. I start writing, and instantly feel the pressure and tension easing, and a good momentum building. I feel the release! I’m exhilarated that I’m able to express myself this way, with words. And, this is why I write!

I’m finished writing. It’s time to socialize and share:) Time to meet my blogger friends. This is my reward!

Hit by a truck! On a busy highway! This scene is not unusual when zillions of cars and trucks, only a few feet apart from each other, whiz by on our massive highways.

I sent a casual text one morning to say hello to my good friend only to find out that she was in a car accident three days ago. Hit by an 18-wheeler, on a busy highway. My friend dodged this one! But was not free from physical and mental trauma.

I called her right away to get details. She said, she saw this big truck appear behind her car. Not a big deal there, we share these highways. My friend took a deep breath, exhaled and continued to speak, “What was fearful was that it was approaching my car a bit too fast and before I knew it, I felt a heavy jerking motion.” The truck had hit her, and then hit her again, and then hit her for the third time! Helpless and alone, she did not know what was going on. When she watched the truck speed up toward the back of her car for the third time, she was in complete disbelief. She now knew that she was going to be killed, and in that split second she thought that someone was trying to “finish her off.”

Looking back, according to my friend, it was still a good day on that highway – no life was lost. She continued to say that she was ultimately able to move her car to the shoulders, from lane number two of this four lane highway. The 18-wheeler did the same. It halted, and the driver got out to check on my friend. Glad he did! His apologies were sincere and he made sure my friend was alright. He then explained that he tried very hard to stop the truck, but soon realized the breaks in his huge vehicle had failed. Yikes!!!!!! Soon after, paramedics arrived, police came, and the situation was brought to a calm control.

Shocked, I kept listening to my friend on my cellphone – she gave me an update on her doctor’s visit. The doctor’s prescription: A neck brace and Valium. Her list of concern for her doctor was extensive: she was stressed, jittery, and desperately needed to settle her nerves. She felt nauseated, pressure in her right eye, pressure in her right ear, felt tingling in her teeth. She felt dizzy walking only a few steps – From her bed to her bathroom in her master suite. Repeating her experience in words was taking a toll on her. She was starting to feel tired. So we hung up. She needed the rest.

Few hours later, I texted my friend to see how she was doing. She texted back saying, better. I replied. “I like it that you are taking it easy to recover.” She texted back, “I might need your help for a doc visit.” I let her know whenever was okay. She meant right away. Oops, on this day I had car availability issues! Her car was not derivable any longer.

We have three cars. My husband drove car number one to work. My son took car number two to school. His band camp was in full swing. My daughter needed car number three in about two hours. She needed to drive to our local animal shelter to walk the dogs. I figured I had the car for a short time. I hurriedly gathered my purse, picked up my friend, and took her to the doctor’s office. Thankfully, this office was not far at all. However, this doctor ordered a CT Scan to be done ASAP! An appointment was made. The imaging center was 20 minutes away. But how will I take her?

Car issue persisted! My daughter now needed her car. We had no car! Quickly, my friend texted an old friend of hers, and while waiting for his reply, called her neighbor. They both offered their vehicles. I opted for the old friend’s van, since he lived close to my house. Before getting the van, my friend and I, took my car back to my house. On her way to the shelter, my daughter dropped us to the old friend’s house. We hopped into his van and off we went to the imaging center.

CT Scan was done. We headed back. By this time, my friend was exhausted. I dropped her at her house, and headed to the old friend’s house. He then drove the van and dropped me at my house. I thanked him, and he left. The day was almost over, and now the waiting was “on” for the CT Scan result. My heart assured me that my friend would be fine. I felt relaxed and comforted. And, my thoughts drifted to all the people who touched my day on this day. The success of this day was due to these people. We know, “It takes a village to raise a child,” Well, I know now that, “it takes a village to safeguard our grown-ups.” (The CT Scan result – All clear!) A good news, indeed!